63 Degrees Highton

63 Degrees Highton is a bustling all-day breakfast cafe at 87A Barrabool Road in the heart of Highton village, Geelong. The drawcard for dog owners is straightforward: a footpath and outdoor dining area right out front where your dog can settle in while you work through one of Geelong's better big breakfasts.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome in the outdoor dining area and on the footpath seating out front, on leash. Indoors is off limits, which is standard for a working cafe kitchen. Water bowls turn up in the outdoor area fairly often, but it is not guaranteed, so bring your own bowl to be safe. Ask staff about a puppuccino if your dog has earned one.

Worth knowing

The menu leans into Australian cafe classics at scale: the big 63 Degrees Highton Brekky with bacon, mushrooms, hash brown and herbed sausage, Turkish eggs, chilli scramble on sourdough, smoothie bowls, brisket burgers and a pistachio French toast that has become a signature. Vegan options and an almond croissant cover the rest, and the pistachio cappuccino is a regular's order. It gets busy on weekends with families and groups, so book ahead through OpenTable if you want a table, and note the kitchen wraps up mid afternoon.

Getting there and parking

The cafe sits in the Highton Village shopping strip on Barrabool Road, south of the Barwon River in Geelong. Free street parking is widely available along Barrabool Road and around the village, and the strip is flat and easy to walk with a dog.

While you're out there

There is no dedicated off-lead park in Highton itself, but the Belmont Dog Park is just across the river. Before your table, refuel the humans at the Woodhouse Cafe in Belmont or Skinny Dippers Cafe in Newtown, or try the original 63 Degrees in Geelong West, the team's first spot. More dog friendly cafes in Victoria are listed for weekend planning.

Max: footpath table, Turkish eggs for them, and the staff found me a puppuccino before the coffee machine even warmed up.